The American Prairie Conference occurs every other year. It hasn’t been held in Texas for 30 years!Take advantage of this opportunity to showcase
Read more of this >>HNPAT Program Meeting Wednesday from 6:30pm – 8:30pm “Inspiring Through Education at Lawther Deer Park Prairie”(NPAT photo: a couple walking Lawther…
Read more of this >>2019 TLC CONFERENCE • Conservation Related Policy Issues • Conservation Easements & Private Land Conservation • Opportunities to…
Read more of this >>If you still have questions, please email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or call 713-581-0818.
Thank you!
See the complete program on HNPAT’s website! REGISTER NOW!
HNPAT is partnering with KPC to prepare seeds for KPC’s ‘Great Growout Program’: we will clean seeds and pack them for distribution to individuals who are willing to plant them.
Tarrant County owns is a beautiful native plant, native prairie, and wildlife habitat!
Monitor Fort Worth NPAT Chapter’s website for more information.
Signup for this opportunity by contacting .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) for more information.
NPAT AMBASSADOR, EFFERVESCENT, and DELIGHTFUL!! (You will have caught the ‘prairie bug’ before you realize it! She does her job SO WELL!) Della joined our staff in April, 2018 as our Director of Education and is based in the Houston area. (Shell Oil Company bestowed a grant to benefit individuals in their own backyard, the city of Deer Park, TX.) Ms. Barbato teaches levels K-90 (to so many young prairie people!) through her adult programs and teacher workshops in addition to K-12 prairie programs. Della has become the image of NPAT, conservation, prairies, and more to so many prairie people!
You do NOT want to miss the opportunity! Come meet Della and learn about one of the most endangered ecosystems, Lawther-Deer Park Prairie Preserve, a 51-acre conservation easement located in the middle of a subdivisioin in Deer Park, TX.
(NPAT photo: a couple walking Lawther Deer Park Prairie, 04/18.)
We hope to see you at our usual gathering spot, Community Hall of the City of San Antonio’s
Lions Field Adult and Senior Center, 2809 Broadway Street, San Antonio, TX 78209.
ALSO: MARK YOUR 2019 CALENDAR for these SANPAT-sponsored events:
• FEBRUARY 16: SANPAT’s “3rd Saturday Prairie Restoration Workdays on the Kirchoff Family Farm” resume! Details will be posted and emailed each month. It’s a great way to spend your Saturday morning, on the 3rd Saturday of each month, meet up any time after 9am with other prairie enthusiasts, help with some light chores, and enjoy lunch provided by the Kirchoff Family! Stay as long as you like, enjoy the great outdoors, watch birds and other creatures! Fresh air and good company!
• SANPAT CHAPTER MEETINGS are held on the FIRST TUESDAY each month (we reschedule on certain holidays):
- Tuesday, February 5, “Inspiring Through Education at Lawther Deer Park Prairie”, Della Barbato, NPAT Education Director
- Tuesday, March 5, “Grassland Bird Habitat”Will Newman, Texas Coordinating Wildlife Biologist, Texas Oaks & Prairies, Grassland Restoration Incentive Program, “GRIP”.
- Tuesday, April 2, (to be announced)
RESTORATION WORKSHOP
• Saturday, April 6 “History, Archeology, & Prairie Restoration of South Texas Missions Workshop”
Registration and program details will follow.
All are welcome,
Don Kirchoff
Tarrant County College’s Northwest Campus has endeavored on a prairie restoration project at the site of their future Marine Creek Nature Discovery Center (MCNDC) project.
Professors and students of the Biology & Horticulture Departments have surveyed the site to identify flora and fauna, remove invasive species, seed the site and water it during establishment.
The Horticulture Department has been growing native grasses and wildflowers collected from the site in their greenhouse.
Join us on a tour of the greenhouse facility and learn about their prairie restoration project.
Download map: TCC-NW Meeting Location 2018 – 2019
Texas Parks & Wildlife Department has partnered with UofH’s Clear Lake Environmental Institute of Houston and planned a Prescribed Fire Awareness Workshop Saturday, February 16 - for Landowners, students, and community members with limited exposure to prescribed fire. Email or call Wendy Reistle, .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or 281-283-3045. Wendy is the Environmental Education Coordinator, UofH Clear Lake, Environmental Institute of Houston.
Workshop attendees may apply what you learned later this spring by volunteering to assist in the SPRING PERSCRIBED BURN TPWD and UofH Clear Lake’s Environmental Institute of Houston at UH Coastal Center in La Marque are planning.
Volunteers who wish to assist will ideally have scheduling flexibility as a prescribed burn cannot proceed unless certain weather parameters are met.This means an exact burn date cannot be set far in advance; we need volunteers ‘at the ready’!
To volunteer for the PRESCRIBED BURN contact Evelyn Merz Coordinator at the Texas Institute for Coastal Prairie Research and Education. Her email is .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address); call & leave her a voice message at 713-644-8228.
Scott Kirchoff, Brenda Kirchoff, the Schindlers Brenda plants pollinator seedlings for barrier
(from Victoria), and an unidentified volunteer. against windblown invasive seeds.
Make plans to enjoy your ‘3rd Saturday morning’ on the prairie! Meet up with other prairie enthusiasts, help with some light chores, and enjoy lunch provided by the Kirchoff Family!
Great outdoors, bird and creature watching, (open this link to the bird sighting list Jane Tillman documented on the Kirchoff Family Farm November 3, 2018), fresh air, and good company.
All are welcome,
Don Kirchoff
Photo of Blue Bonnets in Dry Wash
By Jason Weingart, Photographer
Excerpts from February 7, 2018 Article:
If you are willing to make the drive toward Big Bend National Park you can see our earliest-blooming ‘bluebonnets’ between Alpine & Terlingua (Hwy 118).
These are a different species which grow more sparsely and can reach 3 ft in height!
NPAT AMBASSADOR! Della joined NPAT’s staff in April, 2018 and is based in the Houston area. (Shell Oil Company bestowed a grant to benefit individuals in their own backyard, the city of Deer Park.) She has become the image of NPAT, conservation, prairies, and more to so many prairie people. She teaches levels K-90 (to so many young prairie people!) through her adult programs and teacher workshops in addition to K-12 prairie programs.
• Come meet Della and learn about one of the most endangered ecosystems, Lawther-Deer Park Prairie Preserve, a 51-acre conservation easement located in the middle of a subdivisioin in Deer Park, TX.
• We’lll also have board member Hazel Potvin bring us up to-to-date on the progress at the Prairie Demo Garden at Willow Waterhole, which Don Verser has been working on.
• We’ll meet at the American Red Cross, 2700 Southwest Fwy, Houston, TX 77098, USA (map)
All are welcome!
• Conservation Related Policy Issues
• Conservation Easements & Private Land Conservation
• Opportunities to Enhance Texas Conservation Efforts
• Community Conservation and Landowner Engagement
• Land Stewardship
• Fantastic Networking Opportunities
• And Much More!
NOTE: Must pay entrance to Lake Mineral Wells State Park & Trailway. Meet in the parking lot to the picnic area by10am.
-Jeff Quayle will be leading an adventurous hike and will need a head count of attendees, so if you plan on coming, please RSVP or email Jeff (any Questions?): .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
-This will be a moderate hike through Penitentiary Hollow. Hiking boots, long pants and a long sleeve shirt or dressing in layers are preferred.
-BE PREPARED for a lot of exploring off of the main trails - weather permitting.
-Trees and understory species should be leafing out, so we may be dodging some brush and greenbriar. Be prepared to explore some nook and crannies of the hollows.
-We will be observing our native ferns in the area and other natives in the park. A few rare species in the park will be discussed.
March 2, 2019, for our “Hike Penitentiary Hollow” with Jeff Quayle near Mineral Wells, TX, and
March 23, 2019, The Fort Worth Chapter heads east and will be joined by our Blackland Chapter to “Hike & Learn” while exploring two natural history gems in Dallas County: Pemberton’s Big Spring Preserve and Crawford Memorial Park’s prairie remnant.
David is quite the ‘BIRD TALKER’, so mark this date on your calendar and join us TUESDAY, MARCH 5th at 6:30pm, at our usual meeting place, CC Young (4847 W Lawther Dr, Ste 100, Dallas, TX 75214).
Dogwood Canyon is 16 miles south of downtown Dallas in Cedar Hill, TX and is part of the White Rock Escarpment. “Nowhere in North Texas can one find a greater variety of rare species than in Dogwood Canyon. Plants and animals from east, west and central Texas converge here, making the canyon the only place in the world where one can find the Black-chinned Hummingbird of west Texas nesting in the flowering dogwood tree of east Texas.
Audubon owns or manages over 200 acres of nearly pristine wildlife habitat in the canyon, and because the property neighbors university, county, and state lands, it is part of a nearly 3,000 acre greenbelt in southwest Dallas County.” Dogwood Canyon Audubon Center.
Watch for details regarding our APRIL 9 CHAPTER MEETING (back to the 2nd Tuesday). BNPAT and the Trinity Valley Beekeepers will meet together.
Presented by our guest speaker, Will Newman, Texas Coordinating Wildlife Biologist, Texas Oaks & Prairies, Grassland Restoration Incentive Program, “GRIP”.
Please join our meeting at our usual gathering spot, the Community Hall at the City of San Antonio’s Lions Field Adult and Senior Center, 2809 Broadway Street, San Antonio, TX 78209.
All are welcome,
Don Kirchoff
Make plans to enjoy your ‘3rd Saturday morning’ on the prairie! Meet up with other prairie enthusiasts, help with some light chores, and enjoy lunch provided by the Kirchoff Family! Great outdoors, bird and creature watching, fresh air, and good company.
All are welcome,
Don Kirchoff
Zizotes photographed by Don Kirchoff on Kirchoff Family Farm March 25, 2018
Cost is $60/person or $50/each for members.
Registration fee includes a light breakfast, box lunch, and full access to the LBJWC.
6:30pm at CC Young, 4847 W Lawther Dr, Ste 100, Dallas, TX 75214. While BNPAT’s webpage is being reconfigured, updates, times, places, and contacts are available on BNPAT’s website.
(Carpooling is strongly encouraged due to limited parking availability at the sites.)
FW area registrants:
-Meet at 9:00 am at the south parking lot of Tarrant County College South Campus
-Arrive onsite in Dallas at 10:00 am and return no later than 4:00 pm.
Pemberton’s Big Spring
-Owned by the City of Dallas since 2003: the largest and likely the only remaining artesian spring in Dallas. (The site is not open to the public and is accessible ONLY by guided tour.) Big Spring Preserve website, “The spring discharges over 12 million gallons of water into the Trinity River watershed each year. Carbon dating shows that the water is not of modern origins as it entered the aquifer system around 1360 AD.” Our guides for this portion of the trip are Richard Grayson and Ben Sandifer, well-known in Dallas County as champions for local natural areas!
Crawford Memorial Park
-266-acre metropolitan park (since 1964). Originally a part of the Elam Farm, it was donated to the city by the Elam and Samuell families. The prairie remnant covers about 30 acres of the southern end of the park. Recently the prairie has gained fresh attention from local natural history organizations and an iNaturalist BioBlitz was conducted there in 2017. Our guide for this portion of the field trip is Sam Kieschnick, the Dallas-area urban biologist for Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.
NPAT’s Blackland Chapter and Girl Scouts’ first work session of 2019 will be at Boy Scout Hill, White Rock Lake, 316 E Lawther Dr, Dallas, TX 75218.
Watch for time and details on BNPAT’s webpage and Facebook page.
American Red Cross, 2700 Southwest Fwy, Houston, TX 77098, USA (map)
All are welcome!
Plan to join our meeting at our usual gathering spot, the Community Hall at the City of San Antonio’s Lions Field Adult and Senior Center, 2809 Broadway Street, San Antonio, TX 78209.
All are welcome,
Don Kirchoff
Morning: “Bird, Prairie, Archeology & River Walks; Artifact Displays; and
Presentations at Rancho de las Cabras Mission Site (75 County Rd 144, Floresville, TX 78114)
Box Lunches: (provided for those who register) Compliments of Wilson County Wildlife Management Association
Afternoon: Presentations on “Prairie Restorations”, “Prescribed Burns”, “Conservation Easements” and more.
REGISTRATION Link coming soon with details and RESERVATION OPTIONS FOR LUNCH.
Tarrant County College – Northwest Campus, Room WACB 1123
Download map: TCC-NW Meeting Location 2018 – 2019
6:30pm at CC Young, 4847 W Lawther Dr, Ste 100, Dallas, TX 75214. All the information you need can be found on their Blackland NPAT Chapter webpage. Don’t forget the BNPAT FACEBOOK PAGE!
Details will be posted and emailed each month.
Make plans to enjoy your Saturday morning on the prairie!
You can meet up with other prairie enthusiasts, help with some light chores, and enjoy lunch provided by the Kirchoff Family!
Great outdoors, bird and creature watching, fresh air, and good company.
All are welcome,
Don Kirchoff
American Red Cross, 2700 Southwest Fwy, Houston, TX 77098, USA (map)
All are welcome!
NPAT is collaborating with this City of Austin art museum to work on their historic landscape restoration:
• Join us for a morning of learning and native-prairie-seed planting.
• Bring gloves and dress for gardening.
• Click here for more information and to sign up!
Meet up with us, look back at our collective efforts and accomplishments.
We hope to make even MORE POSITIVE impacts in this new year!
Our next project will be to roll seed balls - details below on January 26, 2019!
Location: TCC’s NW Campus, Room WACB1123.
• Bird and nature walk begins at 7:30 am.
• These monthly access days offer a chance to explore one of the last prairie remnants in the Austin area.
• The group will continue seeding the recently burned areas.
Meet at the intersection of Blue Bluff Road and Bloor Road. For more information (and later arrival times), contact .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
Julie d’Ablaing was the recipient of the first ‘HNPAT Prairie Volunteer Award’ which she accepted during the Prairie Stampede held November 28, 2018.
Read the entire story HERE.
We hope to see you Saturday morning!
HNPAT and Hermann Park Conservancy.
Blackland NPAT Chapter meets in the Flag Pole Room of the Pavilion, CC Young, 4847 W Lawther Dr, Ste 100, Dallas, Texas 75214
Our speaker, Bill McGrath, diligently works to restore his 45 acres of woodlands, wetlands, and prairies near the Caddo National Grasslands near Honey Grove, TX.
Mark your calendar to attend 2019 events focusing on learning as much as you can about our disappearing Texas prairie lands and joining in conserving and protecting as much native lands as we can.
We are excited that Rick Fink, dba Bandera Bees, will be addressing the SANPAT Chapter. He will discuss Past, Present, and Future of our Pollinators.
Rick Fink has been a bee keeper for 17 years and has been President of the Alamo Area Beekeepers Association for 7 of those years. Rick graduated from Texas A & M University with a Biology degree. After 35 years in medical equipment industry he launched his encore career as a full time bee keeper. Rick teaches beekeeping classes, provides beekeeping services, performs hive removal and relocation, and does hive leasing.
Rick will share the important role hobbyists, like himself, have in rebuilding the declining populations, the enormous benefit these tiny creatures have in our environment, and graciously display samples of the HONEY he has harvested (which will be available for purchasing as well)! Open this link, see photos and read Mark Dore’s article, San Antonio Express-News, documenting Rick tending to his bees at his home in Bandera.
“Most of us are involved in one way or another with wildlife conservation and would like to hear about species of native bees and wasps. Of special interest is what can we do to protect and expand habitat for these insects that are so important to our environment, including to agriculture and our food supplies.” Please plan to join SANPAT at the City of San Antonio’s
Lions Field Adult and Senior Center, 2809 Broadway Street, San Antonio, TX 78209.
Don Kirchoff
[We’ve moved to the third Sunday of the month.]
It will be BRISK so COME PREPARED!
These monthly access days offer a chance to explore one of the last prairie remnants in the Austin area.
We will join City of Austin staff to seed areas of the preserve.
Meet at the intersection of Blue Bluff Road and Bloor Road.
For more information (and later arrival times), email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
(Photo by Kevin Stewart)
CELEBRATE NPAT in 2018! A field trip to Paul Mathews Prairie is planned for the afternoon (weather permitting).
CATERED DINNER (BBQ or Vegetarian) offering beer and wine; a “DESSERT POTLUCK TABLE” (bring your favorite dessert-SHARE YOUR RECIPE); speakers will share TALES OF THE PRAIRIE.
HERE IS A LIST OF SOME OF OUR SILENT AUCTION of ITEMS offered by VERY GENEROUS DONORS:
Nature Center Packages
Bob Jones Nature Center: gift basket w membership;
Fort Worth Nature Center: gift basket w membership;
The Nature Conservancy: gift basket w membership;
Trinity River Audubon Center: membership;
Texas Native Park at George Bush Library: gift basket;
Heard Nature Sanctuary; Texas Discovery Gardens; Lake Lewisville Environmental Learning Center (also season pass)
Books
BRIT: Illustrated Flora of North Central Texas; Itchy Business; The Texas Legacy Project; Texas Master Naturalist Statewide Curriculum;
Art & Artifacts
Atal atal replica (spear thrower used by pre-Native Americans)
Living Life artwork
Please monitor this website for upcoming activities!
San Antonio NPAT Chapter
The bird and nature walk begins at 7:30 am.
These monthly access days offer a chance to explore one of the last prairie remnants in the Austin area.
We will also be setting up transects for the winter Project Prairie Bird.
Meet at the intersection of Blue Bluff Road and Bloor Road. For more information (and later arrival times), contact .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
• TODAY, the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, as celebrated in the U.S.
• Today is a great time to focus on your holiday and end-of-year giving.
• Donate to NPAT TODAY!
• PARKING COULD BE A CHALLENGE! Arrive as early as you can before 6:30 due to the extraordinary parking situation. Houston Zoo’s Brown Education Center (“BEC”): 6200 Hermann Park Dr., Houston, TX 77030
• ??s - Contact Mr. Jaime Gonzalez, 281-660-6683 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address); on behalf of Coastal Prairie Partnership/Native Prairies Association of Texas
A field trip to Paul Mathews Prairie is planned for the afternoon of December 1 (weather permitting).
Join us at 5 p.m. for a delightful evening at the historic Landmark on Lee Street (see map on registration form) in downtown Greenville.
(Photo by Kevin Stewart)
• We will celebrate with a catered barbecue dinner and beverages, including beer and wine. (A vegetarian option is available.)
• Bring along your favorite delight to add to our ‘Dessert Potluck’ (and share your recipe).
• Presentations will include NPAT’s year in review, speakers will be on hand to share tales of the prairie, and some of NPAT’s special members will be honored.
• Oh yes, we’re also holding a silent auction; so you can mingle with other prairie enthusiasts while reviewing what generous donors have made available for purchase.
• Join Pat Merkord, retired NPAT Executive Director, in welcoming our guests to our SANPAT Chapter December Monthly Meeting.
• Both gentlemen will be presenting their unique perspectives of the Bamberger Ranch Preserve.
• You’ll be able to purchase your own “Seasons at Selah”.
(We will not be holding a December meeting at Tarrant County College – Northwest campus. Monitor our website for FWNPAT’s January events.)
at the American Red Cross, 2700 Southwest Fwy, Houston, TX 77098
Details can be found on both the Houston Chapter’s and the Deer Park Prairie’s calendars, links below:
HNPAT Calendar and DPP Calendar.
1. Bird Survey at Deer Park Prairie: 7:30 am – 8:30 am
2. DPP Workday & Prairie Open to visitors: 9:00 am - 12Noon For Prairie Visitors: Deer Park Prairie is open to visitors during workday hours. Visitors are required to contact a NPAT representative and sign a liability release.
Greater Houston-Galveston groups showcase prairies and pollinators: HNPAT, The Nature Conservancy, and Coastal Prairie Partners present this annual fall event.
REMAINING OCTOBER EVENT:
October 27 - Sierra Club trip to Sam Houston National Forest Blackland Prairie;
Urban Pocket Prairies by Light Rail. Join Jaime González, CPP;
Blackhawk Park Prairie, Invasive Species Removal Event.
SCROLL DOWN TO NOVEMBER 1 for outline of remaining activities from November 1 through 10. Details on the November events and how to register for those, click on this link to CPP’s webpage.
LOCATION: City of Austin Center for Environmental Research (CER) at the Hornsby Bend Biosolids Plant at 2210 S. FM 973, Austin, TX 78725
MISSION: Prepare volunteers for the upcoming winter bird surveys to be held at Indiangrass Prairie (and possibly Commons Ford Prairie).
Training sessions will be held in the CER auditorium and outside the building.
• Friday session will present an overview of PPB, identification of wintering grassland bird species, discussion of field protocols and techniques.
• Saturday there will be a demonstration and practice of technique for surveying transects and conducting the vegetation analysis.
NPAT is collaborating with this City of Austin art museum to work on their historic landscape restoration.
• Join us for a morning of learning and native-prairie-seed planting.
• Bring gloves and dress for gardening.
• For more information and to sign up, click here.
Please include your name, your organization, and cell #, plus same info for those you invite to join us. We hope you’ll join us!
Co-hosted by:
• Native Prairies Association of Texas (NPAT) and
• Wilson County Natural Resources Conservation Service (WCNRCS) (USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.)
Lunch - Once again our lunch is sponsored by the Wilson County Water District #301; we appreciate their continued support!
7:30am on the Kirchoff Family Farm: Morning Tours & Presentations begin:
Early Bird - “Catch a Prairie Sunrise and Birding/Butterfly Tour”, (led by NPAT’s Pat Merkord).
She and Don Kirchoff, (Landowner and NPAT Board member) will discuss the “Impact of Prairie Restoration on Bird/Butterfly Populations”.
We’ll Tour Restored Grasslands - Quail and Neotropical Bird Habitat led by Will Newman (Oaks & Prairies Joint Venture).
Chris Best (USFWS) will present the US Fish & Wildlife Service’s “Green Tree Pollinator Fire-Break - A Bird/Butterfly Habitat”.
Lunch and afternoon presentations will be in the nearby Three Oaks Community Center (located at 158 CR 210).
Afternoon presentations in the Three Oaks Community Center:
“Bird Analysis Data, Kirchoff Restoration Site,” by Pat Merkord , NPAT;
“Monarch Food Source Surveys”, by Dr. Janis Bush, UTSA;
“Neotropical Bird Populations”; by Anna Mathews, American Bird Conservancy
“Seed Availability for Grassland Restoration” by Nathan Custer, Douglass King Seed Company; and
1-d-1 Wildlife Management Activities” by Jamie Killian, Certified Wildlife Biologist, TPWD.
Greater Houston-Galveston groups showcase prairies and pollinators: HNPAT’s, The Nature Conservancy’s, and Coastal Prairie Partners’ annual fall event.
SATURDAY, November 3
- Seaborne Creek Nature Fest in Rosenberg, TX Master Naturalist/Coastal Prairie Chapter: Join the TMN - Coastal Prairie Chapter for an exciting day of activities, speakers, wagon rides, and hikes celebrating our native prairies. Click here for more information.
- Rice University Planting event @ Rice University: Join Rice University to help restore an on campus pocket prairie.
- First Saturday Van Tour of Attwater Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge: 1st Saturday each month: guided van tour of the refuge takes visitors on a 2-hour trip through the prairie. Join refuge volunteers and staff to learn about native coastal prairie, the history of the refuge, the biology of the Attwater’s prairie-chicken, and what’s being done to save it from extinction.
- Robert C. Stuart Park Prairie Planting: Join Houston Parks & Rec. Dept. for a prairie planting in a city park! Contact Kelli Ondracek to register: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). Click here for more information.
SATURDAY, November 10
- Putting Down Roots 2018 on the Katy Prairie: Help the Katy Prairie Conservancy Put Down Roots during KPC’s largest restoration effort yet! Volunteers will work together to transplant native prairie plants in order to restore 55 acres of newly reconstructed prairie habitat. Lunch, snacks, and door prizes will be provided, but feel free to bring your own food if you have dietary restrictions.
- Native Prairie Plant-A-Thon @ Sheldon Lake State Park & Environmental Learning Center: Spend the morning getting your hands dirty by planting native grasses and wildflowers. Volunteer to be a part of our ongoing project to restore over 400 acres of beautiful native prairie habitat! This is a great event for all age groups, interests, and abilities.
- 2nd Saturday Bird Hike @ Houston Arboretum & Nature Center: Work on your bird watching skills while helping the Arboretum monitor bird populations on a fun, relaxed morning walk. Join us on the 2nd Saturday each month at the front door of the building for a 2-hour bird walk led by Kelsey Low, resident bird enthusiast. We welcome all levels of bird watching skill and all ages (as long as you’re quiet) – but no dogs, please! If you have binoculars of your own, please bring them. We do have some binoculars available to borrow.
We are excited that Will Newman, Coordinating Wildlife Biologist, Oaks and Prairies Joint Venture, will be addressing the SANPAT Chapter. His presentation will cover habitat requirements for grassland birds, a brief overview of the natural ecological factors involved, and tools/programs available for technical guidance and financial assistance.
Will Newman is a grassland bird habitat specialist and passionate conservation educator. He received his Master’s degree in Wildlife Ecology from the University of North Texas, where he studied Northern bobwhite quail predator avoidance behavior and population restoration techniques. He has assisted USDA staff and state partners with Farm Bill programs and provided technical guidance for game bird conservation initiatives throughout the diverse Eco-regions of Texas, Ohio, Indiana, and North Carolina.
In his current position as the Texas Coordinating Wildlife Biologist, Will administers the Oaks and Prairies Joint Venture’s conservation delivery platform called the Grassland Restoration Incentives Program (GRIP) and develops conservation partnerships. As a Quail Forever Life Member and devoted outdoorsman he has a dedication to land ethics and natural resource stewardship.
Please plan on joining us at the City of San Antonio’s
Lions Field Adult and Senior Center
2809 Broadway Street
San Antonio, Texas 78209
We are looking for volunteers to help with brush control and grass seeding at the prairie dog town:
• The blue grama and sideoats grama grasses are in full bloom right now.
• We’ll be collecting seed and planting in areas that need it.
• There are trail work opportunities as well. We’ll be planning routes and connecting existing trails on the preserve.
• And, dinner is on us!
WANT TO COME AND EXPERIENCE MADDIN PRAIRIE PRESERVE?
Email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
• SUBJECT should read, MADDIN WORKDAY
• You can ask for more information and
• RSVP, especially if you plan to stay overnight on the property.
NOTE: This event may be rescheduled due to inclement weather.
Presenter: Rachel Richter, Urban Wildlife Biologist with Texas Parks & Wildlife Department.
FWNPAT HAS A NEW MEETING LOCATION:
TCC-Northwest Campus, Rm WACB 1123!
A Mexican free-tailed bat is in flight.
Credit: Bruce D. Taubert/Minden Pictures /Bat Conservation International
“Texas happens to be the battiest state in the country. It is home to 32 of the 47 species of bats found in the United States. Not only does it hold the distinction of having the most kinds of bats, it also boasts the largest known bat colony in the world, Bracken Cave Preserve, near San Antonio, and the largest urban bat colony, Congress Avenue Bridge, in Austin. Visitors from around the world flock to Texas to enjoy public bat-viewing at several locations throughout the state:” TPWD
Please monitor their Facebook page for Chapter events.
Lisa and Jason Spangler have graciously agreed to share their copy of this PBS documentary about the history and importance of the central North American grasslands.
(A companion of the documentary is the hardcover book by the same name, published in March 15, 2001; Aimee Larabee and John Altman, Authors, with the Foreward by Lyle Lovett.)
Description from Amazon.com: “From the formation of this “sea of grass” to the settlers who worked the prairie, this history interweaves the natural and human elements that made the grasslands what they are today. Although this terrain has become our greatest hope for survival—miraculously absorbing and transforming pollution into food for the grasses and, eventually, for humans—no ecosystem faces more danger. What can we do to conserve this special landscape? Through copious illustrations and sidebars taken from diaries, letters, folk tales, music, poetry, recollections, interviews, and other writings, follow the relationship between Americans and the “fruited plains”: the European immigrants who broke the land with the plow; the Indians who first inhabited the range; the cowboys and cowgirls who loved the open skies; and the lives of modern-day ranchers.”
The Library is located at 402 W. 8th Street. It is very easy to locate, and there is plenty of free parking across 8th Street.
We look forward to seeing you; don’t miss this opportunity to meet Lisa and Jason and learn from them! They have a wealth of information to share!
Photo from Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve in Mexico.
Dr. Quiñonez-Piñón has over seven years’ experience in monarch butterfly habitat restoration and protection in the U.S. flyway and in the Mexico overwintering sites, including the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve in Mexico. (The Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve consists of several sanctuaries that protect the habitats of about 70% of Mexico’s migratory butterfly population. Source: DISCOVERY Nature Encyclopedia.)
-Her goal is to ensure that Texas cities within the monarch butterfly central flyway take appropriate, effective conservation actions that will increase the monarch population.
-She works closely with people at different levels and backgrounds to define the best strategies to implement monarch conservation programs.
-One of her greatest accomplishments at Forests for Monarchs was the distribution of more than 2 million native trees within the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve to restore 4,500 acres of native forest on degraded land.
We meet in the 2nd Floor Classroom of the Georgetown Library,
402 W. 8th Street, in ‘BEAUTIFUL DOWNTOWN GEORGETOWN’.
presentation will address her experiences teaching the prairie and other programs at Deer Park Prairie and in the Houston area.
Come meet our latest staff member; her dedication and enthusiasm are contagious!
NPAT is collaborating with this City of Austin art museum to work on their historic landscape restoration. Join us for a morning of learning and native-prairie-seed planting.
Bring gloves and dress for gardening.
For more information and to sign up, click here.
The restored prairie at Commons Ford Ranch Metropolitan Park has a different look in the fall: in addition to the fall bloomers, it is a good time for grasses.
• Please join Diane Sherrill and Kirsti Harms to learn about these wonderful plants!
• Registration is required - so click here to register and read all the information, click here.
Learn how you can easily identify native grasses. Glenn will focus on 10 to 15 of our most common prairie grasses and explain HOW they fit into the prairie system, WHY we should value grasses AS MUCH AS wildflowers, and recognize they are the BACKBONE OF A PRAIRIE.
Our Presenter, Glenn Merkord, is Vice President and Senior Biologist, of Bluestem Environmental Consultants based in Conroe, TX.
• Glenn earned his B.S. Texas A&M University-Kingsville (Math & Biology double major); M.S. Texas A&M University-Kingsville (Statistics & Biology double major)
• He is a very dedicated Volunteer with the Native Prairies Association of Texas as Management Team Leader at Lawther – Deer Park Prairie.
• His Areas of expertise include: GIS, computer programming, wildlife studies, grassland restoration, and seed banking.
Brett will present updates of White Rock Lake Prairie Remnants Management.
If time permits briefings on Harry Moss Park and other City of Dallas prairie sites.
Photo of Phoebe on prairie succlent, White Rock Lake Prairie
Rally goes beyond workshops — it’s about community; it’s the place to share ideas, be inspired and connect with peers to call on for advice in the future.
In addition to Rally’s130+ educational sessions, you’ll experience what it’s like to
• be part of the Rally community,
• make new friends; attend events like the screening of the documentary “Lake of Betrayal,”
• a deep discussion about land loss by land-based peoples,
• two guided jogging tours and
• a sustainability tour of the LEED™ certified convention center.
Monarch Watch Specialist, Cathy Downs, will teach us everything we need to know to participate in the protection and conservation of the iconic Monarch butterfly Danaus plexippus.
• After exploring the fascinating biology and behavior of monarchs, this program will illustrate various threats to monarchs, especiallly habitat loss throughout its migratory range and solutions to those threats.
• You will be introduced to citizen science programs to help assess monarch populations, migratory routes, and participate in other research projects.
Live caterpillars and butterflies will be on hand to examine and help with the training.
• You can REGISTER HERE or call 830-249-4616
Cibolo Nature Center & Farm
140 City Park Rd., Boerne, TX 78006
Wednesday, at Rice University, 6100 Main St, Houston, TX 77005
Monarch butterflies captivate us with their beauty and incredible endurance, but despite their popularity, monarch populations are in serious decline.
• In this class, you’ll learn about their complex relationship to milkweed, their multi-generational migration, and what you can do to help monarchs at home and on a global scale.
• We’ll even give you some native wildflower seeds to plant at home.
• NPAT joins partners, CPP and The Nature Conservancy in presenting this “day of presentations and activities focused on practical, on-the-ground restoration of prairies on the upper Texas coast”.
• TOPICS: Restoration of farms to prairies; Prairie waterfowl conservation; Urban prairie establishment; Restoration of platinum prairies
USFWS Botanist, Chris Best, and four USFWS Interns, surveyed a portion of Kirchoff Family Farm this past Wednesday, October 17, 2018, including one of the Milkweed Garden plots. Mr. Best shared with these photos. Top left is the AMAZING Danaus Chrysalis on Milkweed Zizotes; top right is the Monarch Larva on Milkweed Zizotes. Per Mr. Best, “How these monarchs overwinter is unknown. It is just as likely as not that they do overwinter in Michoacán.” Volunteers on our October 20 workday might have similar experiences! You never know!
• Register online - Brenda will provide lunch for all who register.
• Our workday begins at 8am, enjoy lunch provided by the Kirchoff Family, and you are welcome to leave at 2pm or before if you want.
• We’ll do some manual labor, since it is quite muddy out there. Water is still standing in the driveway; more than an inch of rain fell onto already saturated soil: 1. Trim and clean out burrowing owl sites; 2. Assist with trimming underneath electric fences; 3.Chop and treat huisache; and 4.Transplant semi-woodies.
BRING YOUR MUD BOOTS, GLOVES, and dress for the weather.
• LOCATION: Near Poth, TX. Street Address: 1444 C.R. 210, Floresville, TX 78114 (Coordinates are: North 28.973611 West -98.108333).
• Call BRENDA KIRCHOFF: 361.564.0177.
Commonly found among the milkweed,
Mr. Best photographed Monarch Larvae: the Tarantula Hawk looks for its prey!
We meet at the Red Cross Building at 2700 SW Freeway, Houston, TX 77098
There will be several activities going on in which you are welcome to participate:
• FIRST: Registration for lunch required (complimentary lunch included).
• Please bring your rubber boots as the prairie is very wet.
• 7:30 a.m. we’ll start our monthly bird count;
• A work day will be going on, with great conditions for removing invasive species and your help will be appreciated.
• 9:30 a.m. will be the NPSOT plant walk. NPSOT and NPAT will be out identifying plants on transects; we are happy to have you along.
• 2:00 p.m. Don’t miss Lan Shen’s talk at the Map to LaPorte Library.
Two events polish off the month of September, so check time and registration requirements at CPP’s webpage.
September 29 - Prairie Plants for Pollinators in the Urban Garden, LaPorte Library, 600 S. Broadway St., LaPorte 77571.
September 29 - Prairie Planting, Hobart Taylor Park
(OCTOBER events appear below in date order.
Contact: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
11-year old Kasey Rhodes (pictured here), wrote the article, “Monarch’s Milk for the Great Migration”, and has dreamed of having a prairie day. She moved forward with her plan after having received support from many people, including NPAT’s Michelle Villafranca. “BUTTERFLIES ALWAYS HAVE HELD A FASCINATION FOR 11-YEAR old Yantis resident Kasey Rhodes”. Kasey’s article was published in the June, 2018, issue of the WOOD COUNTY ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE “Coop News”. Fort Worth NPAT Chapter’s Michelle Villafranca has been advising the Yantis family on setting up a community event in their town. They are excited about the first YANTIS PRAIRIE DAY which will include: Various expert speakers; seed giveaway; a class on tagging, sexing and tracking butterflies; and a “native edible plant and herb walk”!
• Michelle Villafranca provided rootstock from her own yard for the plant giveaway.
• Dan Caudle of BRIT & Rob Ziehr of NRCS coordinated a donation of native seed. They attended the Prairie Seekers training in March & were very enthusiastic.
Photo from WOOD COUNTY ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE “Coop News”, June, 2018 issue.
If you still have questions, please email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or call 713-581-0818.
Thank you!
Presented by Susan Snow, Archeologist, San Antonio Missions National Historical Park.
All are welcome! Learn of the TREASURES in our area!
Our chapter meetings are held in the Community Room at San Antonio’s Lions Field Adult & Senior Center, 2809 Broadway, San Antonio, TX (HERE’s the MAP).
Come and meet Nate Custer from Douglas King Seeds. He’ll talk about this San Antonio-based seed company.
CenTex NPAT Chapter’s meetings are held on the FIRST WEDNESDAY of EACH MONTH. We meet at the Georgetown Library, at 402 W. 8th Street, in ‘BEAUTIFUL DOWNTOWN GEORGETOWN’.
Presenters, Karl & Kelli Ebel with their 12-year old son Christian, will tell us about their own “Journey of Restoring 645 Acres of Rare Silveus Dropseed Prairie at the Ebel Grassland Ranch”
PLEASE NOTE: Our September 10 meeting will be held in a NEW location on TCC’s Northwest Campus. PLEASE MONITOR Fort Worth Chapter’s own webpage FOR CAMPUS DETAILS AND DIRECTIONS.
Having spoken to the Fort Worth Chapter the night before, Karl and Kelli Ebel of Ebel Ranch will join our Blackland Chapter on Tuesday!
Remember the first stop of our June 16 NE Texas Bus Tour - Ebel Ranch?
DON’T MISS THIS charismatic couple! They will continue the discussion of the June 16th trip to their ranch: “sustainable beef production on native grasslands.
Our chapter will meet at The Point and Pavilion Center for Arts and Education, CC Young Retirement Community, 4847 W Lawther Dr., Dallas.
Sponsored by San Antonio NPAT Chapter
Meet at the intersection of Blue Bluff Road and Bloor Road.
LOCATION: Corsicana Public Library, 100 N 12th Street, Corsicana, TX 75110
Open the link and Click on Find a Nonprofit Type in Native Prairies Association of Texas/ENTER to make your donation to NPAT.
We appreciate your support.
We are grateful to be among the deserving organizations who benefit from the generosity of individuals like yourself.
NPAT
Cleveand Powell is a native plant enthusiast who loves to grow his own grasses, forbs, vines and shurbs.
He has propagated plants for residential landscapes, a living roof, and his home garden in San Antonio.
He currently works for San Antonio Water System as an Irrigation Consultant.
SANPAT monthly meetings are held at the City of San Antonio’s Lions Field Adult and Senior Center.
Photo: Foxglove Ripened Seed Pods, August 2017, on Kirchoff Family Farm, Don Kirchoff, Photographer
Call TLC @ 512.994.8582 for Sponsorship & Exhibitor opportunities
Call Hilton Austin Airport @ 512.385.6767 (Room Block Rate = $146/night)
• Conservation Related Policy Issues
• Conservation Easements & Private Land Conservation
• Opportunities to Enhance Texas Conservation Efforts
• Community Conservation and Landowner Engagement
• Land Stewardship
• Fantastic Networking Opportunities
• And Much More!
Welcome Pat Merkord, dedicated biologist who has served NPAT for many years! Pat will discuss acquisition, advocacy, & prairie management on NPAT properties & conservation easements.
• She is well-qualified to address us regarding acquisition, advocacy, & prairie management on NPAT properties & conservation easements. She is a member of NPAT’s Board of Directors and served as Executive Director, Board President and Board Secretary.
• From the Rolling Plains to the Gulf Coast to the Blackland Prairie to the Fort Worth Prairie & the Hill Country, NPAT staff, board & volunteers are working hard to protect & conserve Texas’ last remaining prairies; and Pat has been there all along!
• Join us & find out how you can help!
Our monthly access days offer a chance to visit one of the last prairie remnants in the Austin area. Meet at the intersection of Blue Bluff Road and Bloor Road. For more information, contact .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) Kirsti Harms.
7:30am Come early (and beat the heat) for the nature walk and bird survey,
9:00am or join us for the work day! Rene Barrera will lead the prairie restoration activities.
(*)If there are no attendees for the 9:00am work day, that portion will be cancelled.
Arrive EARLY - witness a spectacular sunrise (Photo by Don Kirchoff, Sunrise on Kirchoff Family Farm, July 29, 2018)
• We’ll start at 8am, enjoy lunch provided by the Kirchoff Family, and leave when you want.
• LOCATION: SE of San Antonio, Wilson County; Street Address: 1444 C.R. 210, Floresville, TX 78114 (Coordinates are: North 28.973611 West -98.108333).
• Call BRENDA KIRCHOFF: 361.564.0177.
Course Section ID
This class is an opportunity for experienced plant-lovers to learn more about the amazing plant diversity of Central Texas.
Two sessions will be in a classroom (Classroom time will involve discussions of general plant terminology, nomenclature and taxonomy, rare plant species, regional floristics, and resources);
Three sessions will take place in the field: Field trips will involve discussion of all plant species, especially the little tiny ones that don’t appear in field guides.
Check out HALT-1075.
• RSVP to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or call Glenn at 1-936-827-7978. If it is a last minute decision, please contact Glenn, in case there are last minute changes.
Moth and insect enthusiasts Katy Emde and John Schneider will set up black (UV) lights and white screen to attract moths and other night insects. We will view and ID those that come.
• Please REGISTER HERE so we will have a head count for the light snack we’ll have for everyone. For those without internet, call 713-714-6763 and leave a message to register (Name, number in your party)
8:00 p.m. Doors open – visitors are encouraged to walk and view the prairie in the relative coolness and breeze just before sunset
9:00 p.m. Moth and night insect viewing begins
• TUESDAY, AUGUST 7, San Antonio NPAT Chapter’s Monthly Meeting, 7-8:30pm, “Locating, Collecting, Propagating Native Seeds” by Cleveland Powell
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 22, Houston NPAT Chapter’s Monthly Program Meeting, Arrive@ 6:30pm; Program @7pm. Event Location: Red Cross Bldg, 2700 SW FRWY, HOUSTON. Easy access and free parking!
• Full details on HNPAT’s webpage.
• These chapters will not meet in August: Blackland & Fort Worth.
“News & Events,” “Chapters”, and our Facebook pages. Check websites, for local chapters in your area of: Native Plant Society of Texas “NPSOT, Texas Audubon, and Texas Master Naturalists for upcoming outdoor events!
3601 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd., Gate 6, Fair Park, Dallas, 75210
Dear Plant Enthusiast!
I am very pleased to announce our first annual Native Plant Symposium! And I think we have a unique and very qualified list of speakers – many of whom may not be that familiar to some of you. I hope you will forward this to the organizations you are active in, as well as anyone you think might be interested in native plants. Due to a misinterpretation on my part, I am just now getting this out, but I hope you haven’t already made plans for July 14th! Thank you for your interest and I look forward to seeing you in a couple of weeks!
Naturally,
Roger Sanderson
Director of Horticulture, Texas Discovery Gardens at Fair Park
Six speakers on six captivating topics. Join us as we celebrate the wealth of plant diversity in the Lone Star State! In an environment increasingly devoid of this plant heritage, protecting, restoring, using, and promoting it is more important than ever! CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP
.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Let her know if you will help restore this Blackland prairie remnant.
Co-Sponsors: NPAT and Austin Nature Preserve System.
We hope you can meet us Saturday, August 18, 2018, for project work and prairie discoveries sponsored by the San Antonio Chapter of the Native Prairies Association of Texas (SANPAT). Lunch, as always, will be provided by the Kirchoff Family in appreciation of your help! Look for an email (several days prior to August 18) so you can signup!
COST: $225 PER PERSON (FOOD, 2 NIGHTS LODGING, MATERIALS)
Email Questions to Leslie Wittenburg: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
WHEN July 23 - 25, 2018
WHERE: HERMAN’S HIDEOUT, 2143 West Harrison, Port O’Connor, TX 77982
Field study at Powderhorn Ranch
Photo by Kirsti Harms: Compass plant leaves at Burleson Prairie.
Join Kirsti Harms as we resume our monthly meetings.
Georgetown Public Library, 2nd Fl Classroom
Event Location: Red Cross Bldg, 2700 SW FRWY, HOUSTON. Easy access and free parking! Directions and details on HNPAT’s webpage.
It’s not too late, please send in your photos (include the prairie and identify content please).
Please submit to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)!
Thank you to each photographer for sharing these images taken while touring
• Matthew Cartwright-Roberts Prairie near Terrell,
• Ebel Grassland Ranch, Sulphur Bluff,
• Lennox Woods Preserve near Clarksville, and
• Mr. B. F. Hicks, Daphne Prairie, Mt. Vernon.
Photographer: Gary Barton, “I regret not taking more photos.
Thank you for planning the wonderful tour. It, like the other two, was fun and educational.”
The group ends the day walking Daphne Prairie.
Photographer: Mike Degroot
Black-eyed Susan Rudbeckia hirta Ebel Grassland Ranch
Photographer: Ellen Guiling,
“So fun! I didn’t even know a hayride would be involved!! Also got a hayride on Daphne!”
Antelope Horn Milkweed Asclepias asperula Ready to transport prairie enthusiasts
Seed pods, Matthew Cartwright-Roberts Prairie around Ebel Grassland Ranch
Rattlesnake Master Plant Mushroom hiding in Lennox Forest
Matthew Cartwright-Roberts Prairie
Photographer, Masako, “thanks for taking me to the bus trip I really enjoyed it.”
American basketflower (foreground) Close up of Prairie Indian Plantain,
Prairie Indian Plantain (background) Matthew Cartwright-Roberts Prairie
Photographer, Terri White,
Walking the Prairie Waining wildflowers; prairie grasses gone to seed
At the City of San Antonio’s Lions Field Adult and Senior Center.
Welcome Katie Boyer!
Katie serves as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Southwest Region’s Monarch Outreach Specialist, in the Austin Ecological Services Field Office. In this role, Katie coordinates monarch butterfly conservation efforts with a variety of partners and leads outreach efforts to increase awareness of monarch and pollinator decline. Katie holds a Bachelor of Science in Resource Conservation from the University of Montana and a Master of Natural Resources in Environmental Policy from Utah State University.
OUR AGENDA
7:00 to 7:10pm: Welcome by Don Kirchoff
7:10 to 8:10pm: “The Monarch Conservation Movement” by Katie Boyer.
This presentation will cover monarch biology and the conservation movement to recover the beloved insect.
STATISTIC: The eastern migratory population of the monarch butterfly has declined by 80-90 percent in the past 20 years, which has prompted an international movement to conserve this majestic species.
8:10 to 8:30pm: Q&A and Announcements